


Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Human

by Scarfinator



Category: Tales of Series, Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Tales of Femslash Week 2018, Wedding Rings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-22
Updated: 2018-08-22
Packaged: 2019-06-30 21:41:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15760263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarfinator/pseuds/Scarfinator
Summary: Edna swore centuries ago to never intertwine with humans more than necessary. When out of nowhere she found herself crossing that boundary of "necessary" to fall in love with Rose, she should have expected to continue tumbling further down the rabbit hole. And yet she is still shocked when a conversation between her and Rose about weddings—a practice far more common among humans than seraphim—leaves her desiring yet another major entanglement with human culture.When given the chance, she breaks from the group to look at engagement rings. And then runs into Lailah while out despite her best efforts to keep her whereabouts secret.





	Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Human

_‘Humans sure do like to come up with new ways to go broke…’_

Edna scanned over the contents of a display case filled with expensive gemstone adorned rings.

That day she opted to go off on her own and stop by a small but fancy jewelry store in one of Ladylake’s more noble oriented shopping districts. It wasn’t far from Alisha’s mansion, where she and Rose were staying, so it was no major detour. And ever since the conversation they had that morning, a certain thought kept racing through her head…

  


* * *

  


“I truly do pity whoever the betrothed is,” Edna mumbled into Rose’s chest.

Rose sighed. “Yeah. I’ve never seen how these guys are in private, but given the royal family’s public reputation I’ll bet they’re even worse there.”

“Maybe she’s lucky and she’s just as much of a prick as that brother of Alisha’s is. They can bond over their mutual prickness.”

Rose laughed at the quip and leaned her chin further into the top of Edna’s head. The two had been awake for several minutes but nonetheless remained within the bed in one of Alisha’s guest rooms where they had slept, opting to instead cuddle within it until someone came to look for them.

As usual whenever they got an extended amount of time alone together, Edna had taken the opportunity to indulge Rose in her touchy-feely habits. She was less prone than her lover to seek physical contact, but away from prying eyes it was well worth submitting to her wiles. Despite her usual lack of initiative, Edna appreciated and craved Rose’s touch just as much Rose did her own.

Rose’s hold around her was relaxed yet tight; it was clear she didn’t want to leave her side anytime soon. Edna silently relished in the embrace, holding Rose close to her in turn. So instead of getting up, they turned to conversation; at that moment they were talking about Rose’s plans for the day.

“But yeah. It’s Alisha’s youngest older brother who invited her and I to his wedding,” Rose said with a scowl. “She’s just happy that he thought of her for once, but I’d still barely call inviting people to his wedding only because it makes him look better to the public an act of brotherly love. It’s obvious the rest of the royal family’s only easing up on her because everyone else is too. Sort of.”

“Well, then we can just not think of him in turn,” Edna declared. “I went that long without even realizing any of Alisha’s siblings even existed. Even though it makes more sense than her having none, looking back.”

Rose laughed once more, more softly this time, and ran her hand through Edna’s hair. She let out a soft, contented hum as Rose’s hand ghosted over the back of her head and slid through the strands atop it.

“We both know Alisha won’t have any of that, so I’ll just have to go and protect her myself,” Rose said. “Maybe I can get some good food out of it too,” she added impishly.

Edna smiled, kissed Rose’s cheek, and pulled her a touch tighter inward. “For once I can’t blame you for having the food as your priority. Alisha really is a foolish girl.”

“That’s just how she is,” Rose sighed. “And just like her brother had to invite her, it wouldn’t reflect well on her if she bailed.”

Rose paused, even more melancholy coming over her. “…Come to think of it, this’ll be the first wedding I’ve attended. But it’s hardly my ideal first wedding to go to.”

“What would your ideal one be?”

“Not one where the groom was a jerk, and not one run by stuffy nobles. That’s what’s most important. My ideal wedding would be, well…” Rose stopped to sheepishly giggle, and stroked Edna’s back. “Well, that’s a secret! Who knows, whatever I want to go to could be how mine turns out."

What Rose implied about her future desires took Edna aback. She nearly opened her mouth to remind Rose that seraphim did not typically engage in those sorts of ceremonies, but the words got stuck in her throat. It felt inappropriate to bring it up while they were in such an intimate and tension free position. So instead of chiding her for making assumptions about what she wanted, she chose to tease her.

“Good girls shouldn’t keep secrets.” Edna broke her and Rose’s embrace to sit up and glower down on her. “Remember who you’re talking to. To think you’d leave your own girlfriend hanging like that… How cruel.”

Rose bolted up to a sitting position herself and looked at her in shock and fluster. “...Huh? Wait, no, I didn’t mean—”

“Didn’t mean what?” Edna leaned in inches away from Rose’s face, pouting. She fought to keep her amusement with her from showing in her face and voice. Rose was so easy to mess with, even though they had been so close for so long. “Didn’t mean to leave me guessing what you might want from me when the time comes? Didn’t mean to leave me to my own fantasies while refusing to share yours? What a heart-breaker you turned out to be, Rose.”

The facade didn’t work. After Rose’s initial surprise, she donned a devilish expression. “‘Your fantasies’, huh…?”

Edna grinned slyly, unfazed. “Yes? What of them?”

“Well, if you’re so mad at me for keeping secrets, why don’t you share yours! Maybe I’ll change my mind if you do~”

“You first,” Edna said. “You’re the one who brought it up first, and you’re the one who tried to keep a secret first. I’m not saying anything until you repent.”

Rose lost the impish overtones and scratched the back of her head. “Well, actually… It’s less a secret and more I just don’t have any special ideas. I never thought I’d get this far, never thought I’d actually get married, so—”

“Liar,” Edna spat.

“I’m not lying, I swear!” Rose laughed nervously. “I mean, I’ve never liked guys, so I didn’t think I’d ever actually get a chance to do something like this. Even that thing with Rolance was just political, so—”

“Quit lying,” Edna repeated. She pushed Rose down back into the mattress, and crawled on top of her. “Good girls don’t lie to their lovers either. And bad girls, well…” Her poised hands shot for Rose’s stomach.

“Ack!! Aha, stop!! Quit tickling me, I really don’t—”

“That determined to keep quiet, huh?” Edna ignored Rose’s hysterics, only tickling her harder. “All you have to do is tell me about what kind of dress you’ll wear. Or maybe tell me where our wedding will be? Or even just tell me about the food we’ll serve? I’m sure you of all people would have at least an idea of the food you want.”

“Ah-M-maybe I’d t-tell you if you’d quit—ahahaha!!!"

“Know your place, human!"

  


* * *

  


In the end, she never did get answers out of Rose. Before she could, Mikleo burst into the room in a panic to ask what was happening. Two pillows chucked at his head ended the entire conversation.

None of the seraphim, and certainly not Edna herself, decided to accompany the pair of human women to the wedding. For one, it was an event run by humans for humans; it would have been a waste of time to attend a ceremony where Rose and Alisha were the only ones who could see them. Although, she thought with a smirk, it would have been quite a sight for the other patrons if she had tried to dance with Rose there.

Tension regarding how the public felt about the relationship between the princess and Rose the Shepherd had already been simmering for quite some time though. As amusing as the thought of Rose dancing with an imaginary girlfriend was, that would have put just one more dent in her public perception.

But even if Rose had not wanted to keep herself out of public ire for the sake of continuing her friendship with Alisha, she still would not have attended. Rose and Alisha planned this out ahead of time as something for just the two of them; they wanted to spend some sorely needed one-on-one time together after months of separation.

Much to her irritation, Edna’s heart still sank a touch whenever she thought of the human girls’ bond. But it mattered not at this point. She had claimed Rose long ago, and Alisha would never even dream of interfering with that. All that remained for her to fairly be upset about is whenever the two of them got to do things like this together—experiences that only two fellow humans could share.

Edna rolled her eyes at her childish resentment and focused on the display case once more.

Even if she were to keep in mind that the custom of proposing to others with gemstone adorned rings was more common among the wealthy, it was still ridiculous. About the only reason she could think of for making the rings so _expensive_ was that they seemed to be priced according to rarity. She noticed many of the colored diamond rings were more expensive than the “normal”, transparent diamond rings. As an earth seraph, Edna knew they were definitely rarer diamonds.

She wasn’t there to buy anyway. Just to observe; her conversation with Rose that morning had her curious more than anything. She rolled her eyes at the thought of how much of a dent she would have made in her wallet just for the sake of a frivolous gesture of love to Rose.

Still though, looking at the display was an interesting experience for her. As per usual whenever Edna had something she went into vocally not caring about, she had started putting some serious thought into this. Although weddings were indeed far more common among humans, the more she thought about it the more she thought having one might not be so bad.

And should she pursue ceremonially marrying Rose, she knew she would love to be proposed to with a ring; tangible goods and gaudy romantic gestures were both things that she adored more than anything. So even if she herself could care less, it was more important to attend to what her girlfriend would want.

 _‘No use sticking around here any longer.’_ Having had her fill of window shopping, Edna left the store. It was starting to get crowded anyway. The thought of so many prying eyes being about was irritatingly discomforting. It’s not like any of them were likely to see her, but the idea of someone at least possibly maybe seeing her snoop around a human store looking at hypothetical engagement rings for her girlfriend was enough to create… an annoying level of anxiety.

She sighed, stepped out of the store, and popped her parasol open. Keeping on with this sort of embarrassment over human culture would be more likely to upset Rose than make Edna look dignified. She was consciously aware as much at this point. But stopping herself from acting on her shame was easier said than done.

Even though she knew it probably wasn’t true, she still felt herself believing she had begun to walk down Eizen’s sordid path. That she would ultimately have nothing to gain but disappointment and turmoil from consorting with Rose. No matter how deeply in love with her she was.

Edna noticed at this point that she was walking a bit more briskly than she thought. She slowed herself down; no use working up a sweat over a stroll through the city.

At least unlike her brother. she wasn’t abandoning anyone in favor of the humans. In fact, Rose was one of her only current close companions, and the rest were seraphim who were contracted with her as well anyway. To turn away from Rose for the sake of her own ego would be no different than what Eizen did to her all those centuries ago.

That’s what she needed to keep telling herself if she wanted to have any chance at dissuading herself from further self-imposed shame.

She turned the corner away from the shopping district and looked around. She stopped for a moment to try and remember the path back to Alisha’s manor. Expensive human wares weren’t something Edna typically cared about, so the part of Ladylake that she just visited was unfamiliar territory.

“Edna, what are you doing here?”

She jumped in place. If Lailah could startle her with a mere greeting, it seemed Edna had not yet calmed down as much as she thought she had. She took a deep breath, then turned around to speak with her guest. Or rather, she tried to, but Lailah spoke again before she could reply.

“You looked like you were in a hurry a minute ago. Did something happen?” Lailah’s face betrayed nothing; an innocent question from an oblivious woman. Or so those who didn’t know her like Edna did would believe.

“…How long have you been watching me? I haven’t been ‘hurrying’ for quite some time.” She opted to ask a new question instead of answering the one posed to her.

“So you were hurrying then?” Lailah grinned just slightly. A slight, but clearly knowing grin.

Edna groaned. “Don’t give me that. What are you doing here anyway?”

“I was just taking a stroll~” Her voice took on a mischievous tone. “I really would like to know what you were doing, though.”

“If you’re perceptive enough to know I had business here, then you should also know I’m not going to say anything.”

Lailah pouted for a moment, then resumed her usual mature, gentle demeanor. “I see. In that case, I’ll simply carry on as though you were also taking a breath of fresh air. Do you want to join me?”

“…Sure. I’ll go on a ‘stroll’ with you, who I will also presume wasn’t up to anything special.”

She responded with only a smile and small laugh, a signal that a consensus to not speak of the incident any further was reached. As they began to head back though, a sense of regret for not speaking up after all began to wash over Edna. In truth, this was an issue she did want to speak with someone about. And although she was in no mood to deal with Lailah inevitably poking fun at her shyness, she was the best bet to hold a conversation with regarding the matter.

Since Lailah was particularly understanding of those who did not wish to speak, being a seraph under a literal oath to keep her own secrets, she wasn’t going to try and get any answers out of Edna at this point. Not without her giving Lailah a reason to.

“…I suppose I did have a reason for going here in particular,” Edna began before she even realized what she was doing.

Lailah swiftly turned to face her and stopped, face alight once more. “What was that reason?”

Edna slowed to stand beside her. She was already regretting her decision, and knew Lailah was well prepared to dig into her, but also knew there was no choice but to keep going. “…Research.”

“Research?” She got that reply and a clearly faked quizzical look from Lailah in return.

“Research,” Edna repeated. “Rose and I were… talking about certain aspects of human culture. Noble human culture, to be exact. It all sounded ridiculous to me, how much they were willing to spend on… certain things, so I came down here to see what sort of wares they dabbled in.” She sighed, a deep breath disguised as a judgement on mankind. “I was right. They’re morons. Gemstones, ivory, luxury furs. Humans think their rarity justifies the price, but it’s all useless accessories. Worth nothing more than fleeting aesthetics. Pointless bragging rights. When you found me, I had gotten out of a jewelry store to—”

Lailah’s grin had widened significantly at this point, indicating she had gotten the idea. There was no more use beating around the bush through uncharacteristically long monologues.

“... To look at rings.”

Lailah gasped and clasped her hands together as soon as the words left Edna’s mouth. Once more, Edna cringed, but she continued on. “Rose talked about the concept, since she and Alisha were going to one today. It had me thinking about ways to show my love for her in a more human way.” She nearly added a _‘hypothetically, of course’_ to the end, but forced it down. She came this far; there would be no more backpedaling.

Not that she would have had time to anyway. Lailah barely waited for her to finish speaking before pouncing, hugging her and squealing directly by her ear. Edna’s declaration clearly released all the excitement Lailah was holding in.

“I knew it, I knew it!!” her annoying friend cheered. “I knew you might have that on your mind, but I never thought I’d get it out of you!”

“You didn’t get anything out of me,” Edna gently pushed Lailah away. She didn’t want Lailah anywhere near her face when she was blushing that much; it was bad enough for her to be visibly embarrassed. “I was caught, then decided I needed to fess up. It just happened later than it should have.”

Lailah’s laugh simmered down to a giggle. “I apologize I, hehe… I know this is a touchy subject for you. But that’s exactly why I’m so happy.”

“Happy that I’m integrating into human culture?”

“Specifically Rose’s human culture,” Lailah said. “I’ve lived for far more centuries—no, millennia—than you have. So I know better than most that you aren’t wrong in your aversion to humans. Even though I’ve personally disregarded their weaknesses for their strengths, I have empathy for your worldview as well.

“But I also know just how important Rose is to you. So to see you move past that wariness, to try and make this exceptional human happy no matter how embarrassed you are about it… It truly makes me proud.” Lailah paused to smile whimsically. “Proud to be the friend of such an adorable girl,” she added.

“Quit embarrassing me, you’re just making this worse,” Edna retorted. “Confiding in you took up enough of my pride.”

Lailah chuckled. “All right then. I’ll quit teasing you. Now, how about we discuss this seriously?”

“What is there left to discuss? I told you my intentions, you told me what you thought of those intentions. The rest is up to me now.”

“Will you easily follow through with those intentions if I leave you be?”

She had a point. Edna had no room to argue that she wouldn’t experience the same hesitance again should she attempt to go through with the marriage proposal. And she did approach Lailah with the hopes of alleviating that near paralyzing anxiety in the first place. More talk wouldn’t hurt.

“It’s not like I don’t want to. But like I said: what else would there be to talk about anyway? That’s not a rhetorical question.”

That got Lailah beaming from head to toe once more. “I do hope you’re joking! Proposing is just the tip of the iceberg, and you should know that very well! What venue are you planning to use? I suppose invites are out of the question since humans would be unable to attend, but perhaps you have more friends I’m not aware of? And I would be more than willing to help you find the cutest dress possible, because honestly you are going to look absolutely ado—”

“I thought you were done teasing me,” Edna groaned. “And one thing at a time, you excitable woman.”

“I’m not teasing; I really am just, as you said, excited!!” Lailah chirped. After finishing her sentence, she immediately relaxed once more. “You’re right though. You should focus on the events in front of you right now. For example, how are you going to get the ring? And what kind do you want to get?”

“Hard to say,” Edna said. “I have no preferences myself, but I know Rose probably would. As a merchant she’d likely know which ones were worth more, so as ridiculous as those ring prices can be I’d want something like that. I can see her liking something more unique than the customary diamond ring too. That’s another reason I went to look myself at what was for sale.”

“You’ll need a way to pay for it first,” Lailah told her. Edna started to open her mouth to reply. “And no, I will not let you steal one! Whether the cashiers can see you or not, and whether we seraphim usually engage in capitalism or not, they still make their living off selling these.”

Edna rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t going to suggest that. For one you’re right, for another Rose would get mad too. And what if that guild of Rose’s turned out to be a supplier to the store? She’d never forgive me.”

Lailah laughed. “All very good points. I’m glad you understand. But we should return to my original question: how are you going to pay for it?”

“Beats me,” Edna said. “We’ll have to use Alisha as a middleman to get the ring anyway probably, so we could do an IOU with her. As a princess, I’m sure she’d have some good resources, and I’m sure Rose would feel bad but it’d be no sweat off her back in the end.” She suddenly remembered Alisha’s less than stellar noble standing despite her title. “…Hopefully, anyway.

“Actually I shouldn’t count on that, I have no idea how much royalty can actually spend anyway. So I’ve got nothing for plans I guess.”

“Well, I’m glad you have no plans because guess what!” Lailah procured a small box out of a pocket hidden in her dress. It was clearly meant to hold a ring, and she opened to reveal that was indeed exactly what was inside of it. “Tadah~!”

The woman was ever full of surprises. Edna stared in shock for a scant moment, then smirked. “Oh, do we have competition now? If you wanted to play the part of Rose’s rival, you should have entered the scene months ago.”

Lailah giggled. “It’s not that at all. This ring was something that I’ve had on me for a few years anyway, and I thought I’d finally put it to use by letting you use it in my place.”

Edna raised an eyebrow at her. “Did you try to propose to a human in the past too?”

“I did,” Lailah said, suddenly melancholy. “There was a human woman I was on good terms with. Our feelings were mutual, and just like you I wanted to profess my undying love for her in a way that humans understood best. But, certain. Events got in the way, so she was unable to accept.”

“…Was the woman Muse?” Edna inquired.

“I didn’t say who it was~” Lailah said. “As you know, I’ve lived for many years and met many humans. There are a myriad of others I could have fallen for, and Muse would have only been the most recent candidate.”

“It was Muse, wasn’t it.”

Lailah sighed in mock defeat and let out a slight laugh. “Yes, it was Muse. She rejected my proposal on the basis that she desired to have children, something I could not provide her with. And the man she wished to start a family with had no intentions of allowing a polygamous relationship. Particularly involving a woman he couldn’t even see. I had procured the ring already, however, so today I carry it around as a memento.”

“Some story…” Edna said. “If it’s that important to you though, are you ok with just giving it to me like that? Letting someone else carry your love on to someone you never intended to give it to?”

“Of course,” Lailah said without hesitation. “In fact, it’s because it’s so important to me that I want to entrust you with it. You’re my dear friend, Edna; I would be proud to let you let you use it for yourself and what you want. It does me no good but sentiment to keep it to myself. Especially when you need it.”

After all, I love you just as much as Rose does, even if it’s in a different way.”

Edna smirked. “Don’t get sappy on me.” She took the box from Lailah, accepting the gift. “I appreciate your resourcefulness though, and you’re… I… love you too. So, thank you.”

“You’re very welcome,” Lailah said as Edna examined the ring.

“Hm,” Edna mumbled. “The material making up the actual ring portion isn’t anything special. That’s ok though; I’m guessing you had Michael or another similarly… not very wealthy person procure it for you. So I don’t blame you, especially when we have the gemstone up here. Is this… blue diamond?! Lailah, how did you—”

“A woman must have her secrets, Edna! Prying will get you nowhere.”

“She sure must,” Edna sighed. “Either way, this worked perfectly. Like I said before, a novelty ring like this is exactly the sort of thing that Rose would love. Whether it's you or Muse who had the same tastes, it sure was convenient. And I’ve always liked how blue looked on her…”

“A bit ironic for someone named Rose, don’t you think?” Lailah remarked. “I’ve always thought it more fitting that she usually wears red.”

“A rose can come in many different colors,” Edna explained. “The girl I know as ‘Rose’ is no exception. And in fact, as a woman of many faces, she comes in several colors at once. That’s had my eyes on her from the very beginning.”

She paused, and she smiled. A rare, warm smile. “I plan to give every single one of those ‘colors’ my attention.”

**Author's Note:**

> Back at it again at the Edna/Rose tag (does several backflips until I knock down a dusty sign with many lights burnt out hanging over an extremely small amount of fics)
> 
> This was supposed to be for my Tales Femslash Week this year (day 5, "proposal/wedding (w optional blue color theme"), but im posting it a month late because once I missed the deadline that motivation just went out the window for some reason... I was still the week runner though so I'm gonna put it in the tag anyway. No awkwardness necessary if I'm the one calling the shots in the first place \o/
> 
> Anyway I about mcfreakin died multiple times writing this thing... my longfic w my girls slowburning is one thing but actually writing them together from the start? With copious cuddling and a premise entirely abt them about to get hitched? FEELS GREAT MAN


End file.
